76 FAKM-GAKDENIXG AND SEED-GROWING. 



entire working done by hand, but where land is plenty 

 they may be double that distance, and worked with a cul- 

 tivator. In the former case the seed should be sown quite 

 thick, and covered by raking in. As soon as the rows can 

 be traced, use a push-hoe, cutting close to the plants, and 

 when nicely up, they must be thinned to three inches 

 apart, and, of course, all weeds removed from the rows ; a 

 fortnight after the soil should be loosened by deep hoeing, 

 and later the push-hoe may be used, and such weeds in 

 the rows as were previously overlooked be pulled by hand. 

 In the latter case they are seldom thinned, except by oc- 

 casionally cutting out a bunch with one corner of the hoe, 

 and by this plan the seed must be thinly sown, and great 

 pains taken in preparing the soil and covering the seed, 

 lest it will not come up even. I would advise in either 

 case that the seed be sown thick (as the germ is weak, 

 and does not always come up well when sown thin), and 

 afterwards thinned by hand, leaving the plants equi-distant, 

 by which means, when harvested, the roots will be more 

 uniform in size, and the crop enough heavier to repay the 

 extra labor. When grown wide the push-hoe may be 

 used to advantage along the rows before the plants are 

 large enough to admit using the cultivator. All subse- 

 quent working can be done by horse and hoe, twice going 

 over being sufficient in clean land ; and I would here add, 

 that crops of this kind should never be sown where foul 

 seed and weeds abound. For early, the seed may be sown 

 as soon as the ground can be worked in the spring, and 

 for main crop any time until July. 



Gardeners generally sow in May, following a crop 

 of spinach, sprouts, radishes, etc. From two to four 

 pounds of seed will be required to an acre, according to 

 the distance between the rows. 



Preparing for Market* Early-sown carrots arc pulled 

 when half-grown, trimmed, washed, and tied in flat 

 bunches of from four to six. 



